Hydrogen Effect on the Defect Structure Formation in the Zr – 1 WT.% Nb Alloy Under Pulsed Electron Beam Irradiation

Using the methods of X-ray structural analysis and electron and positron spectroscopy, it is found out that an irradiation of the surface of a Zr – 1 wt.% Nb specimen with an electron beam in the melting mode results in the formation of lamellar α+α′-structure, an increase in the dislocation density, a dissolution of the β-Nb phase, and the formation of defects of the vacancy-impurity type. The presence of hydrogen in the alloy irradiated with an electron beam favors the formation of complex hydrogen-vacancy complexes in the surface layer along with dislocations.